Jennifer Matthews: Joe Cangey's philosophy about life is simple.
Joe Cangey: Surround yourself with the people that you care about and that care about you.
Jennifer Matthews: That became even more important after his oncologist said his colon cancer spread to his liver.
Joe Cangey: She told me that, with therapy, there'd be a 75 percent chance that I'd last like five years, and without, maybe a 50 percent chance, so I said, 'I'll take the 75.'
Jennifer Matthews: Hoping to improve those odds even more, Joe went through an experimental procedure called perfusion therapy.
Dr. David Bartlett: The most aggressive way available to deliver chemotherapy right to the tumor and avoid the toxicity to the rest of the body.
Jennifer Matthews: Blood flow to the liver is disconnected from the rest of the body. Heated chemotherapy is delivered and bathes the organ for an hour.
Dr. David Bartlett: It's a durable treatment and much more successful than chemotherapy that's given through the vein for this disease.
Jennifer Matthews: Patients treated with perfusion therapy had a 75% chance of having their tumor shrink by half. Results lasted up to 16 months.
Dr. David Bartlett: The ultimate goal is to prolong survival and prolong quality survival, and that, we believe, we're able to accomplish as well.
Joe Cangey: If I wake up tomorrow or the next day, and someone tells me this has been a dream, I'll believe them because I feel good.
Jennifer Matthews: Good enough to sautee up his favorite treat -- dried red peppers. This is Jennifer Matthews reporting.
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